Spend on display ads is projected to surpass that of search ads in 2016. Columnist Josh Dreller explains why, and what this means for search engine marketers.
Sourced through Scoop.it from: searchengineland.com
Display is set to surpass Search in terms of dollars spent next year. This is mainly because search is nearing a saturation point, while the inventory for display ads is expanding exponentially. There are only so many times a day anyone is going to search on a search engine, so the growth in recent years has been due to more and more people getting on the internet and getting smartphones. Hence, once basically everyone is on the internet and has a smartphone, overall search volume slows to a more reasonable rate of about 10% per year.
Still, a click on a search ad is much more valuable than a display ad, and the CPC’s (cost-per-clicks) reflect this. With search you’re reaching people who are actively searching for your solution, while display is more of a disruption (like traditional advertising). It’s not unusual for me to see search CPC’s of $20 and display CPC’s of $0.20 for the same client.
Both can be great for direct response lead generation. I’ve found that display works best when you’re promoting a free asset (such as an ebook) in exchange for an email address, while search works best for driving phone calls and “contact me” form fills. In other words, leads from search tend to be much “hotter”, while display leads tend to be further up the funnel.
It’s important to measure the results and direct your budget accordingly! Go with what works. And if you’re going to use display for lead generation, I suggest you have something of value to give your visitor in exchange for their contact info. Then get them in an email drip campaign and warm them up over time.
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